Driving through a puddle in your car in Rugby could land you a £5,000 fine

If you drive your car through puddles and splash people in Rugby, you could be heading for a £5,000 fine.

It comes after it was revealed police in Cambridgeshire are hunting a driver who soaked a mum and her two children by driving through a huge puddle, leaving the three of them ‘soaked.’

And motorists in Rugby could face the same fate if they whizz through puddles in their car. Responding to the incident in St Ives, Cambridgeshire where a car ploughed through a 20ft puddle to soak a mum with a pram, Confused.com motoring editor, Amanda Stretton said: “Some people might think that driving through puddles is a bit of fun, with others accusing the police in this instance of overreacting.

“However, it can be a serious safety issue for drivers and is highly inconsiderate for pedestrians.

“Firstly, drivers have no way of knowing what the road surface is under the puddle, causing unpredictable driving conditions. Secondly, the water itself can cause the car to aquaplane – where the vehicle’s tyres fail to grip the road and cause the driver to lose control.

“If that isn’t enough, it’s also just incredibly rude and drivers can be penalised, quite rightly, with a huge £5000 fine.

“Puddle rage really can lead to big fines. To avoid this cost and to ensure their safety, we advise motorists to look out for big puddles when driving, and pay particular attention when there are pedestrians around.”

Police have said that as well as a fine of as much as £5,000, the driver could face a public order offence if it’s found that they’ve been splashing people deliberately.

A police spokesperson said: “It was not raining and the puddle, some 20 feet in length, could easily be seen by motorists. Unbelievably a motorist drove through the puddle causing the water to soak the three.

“The driver could well have waited to drive around the puddle or drive through it very slowly so as to not cause water to splash anyone on the footpath.”

It is illegal to splash a pedestrian with water from the road while driving your car, and drivers could also face public order offences if they do so deliberately. Drivers are more likely to be be issued with a £100 fixed penalty notice and three penalty points if caught. But if they refuse to pay and take the matter to court they could see a maximum fine of £5,000 imposed.